In this activity students investigate cloud opacity, including transparent, translucent, and opaque cloud characteristics. The activity is a companion resource to an episode of the PBS series, SciGirls. The episode, titled "SkyGirls," featured NASA...(View More) female scientists and a citizen science projects for students.(View Less)

A collection of nine atmospheric science and geography activities that guide students in developing the skills used to analyze GLOBE environmental data. GLOBE (Global Learning and Observation to Benefit the Environment) is a worldwide, hands-on,...(View More) K-12 school-based science education program.(View Less)

An introduction to the Landsat satellite is presented through a poster with accompanying images, information and classroom lesson. The poster displays 10 pairs of international Landsat images highlighting changes over time from both natural and...(View More) human-induced causes. The back of the poster provides a glimpse into the history, purpose, and benefits of the Landsat mission. An introduction to the AmericaView program includes information on Earth Observation Day. The lesson uses a matching game format to encourage students to investigate, identify, compare/contrast and report on scenes in Landsat images. See Related & Supplemental Resources for a booklet format of the poster back and additional Landsat image change pairs from Earthshots.(View Less)

Acting as the ICESat-2 satellite, students investigate the reflection of light photons off Earth's surface by catching and recording a number of photons. Using bouncy balls to represent the photons, students drop, let bounce once and try to catch in...(View More) one hand as many balls (photons) as possible. Drops occur on carpeted and non-carpeted areas, and with and without the presence of cardboard buildings, to represent different Earth surfaces. The lesson includes background information, instructions and concluding questions. Related Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) are listed.(View Less)

A Hovmuller plot is a diagram that visibly displays data patterns from a selected latitude or longitude over a time period. Through a storyline and several samples, students are introduced to a Hovmuller plot of temperature data along a longitude in...(View More) the eastern United States. Students then create salinity and precipitation plots using data from the MY NASA DATA Live Access Server.(View Less)

Twice each day, once during daytime and once at sunset, students observe sky color, visibility, and sky conditions over a one week period. Each observation is recorded on a sky report form (included) for follow-up discussions and comparisons. This...(View More) lesson is one of four in the GLOBE program storybook entitled, "What's Up in the Atmosphere? Exploring Colors in the Sky." GLOBE (Global Learning and Observation to Benefit the Environment) is a worldwide, hands-on, K-12 school-based science education program.(View Less)

Using water to represent the atmosphere and milk droplets to represent aerosols, students make predictions and conduct investigations to discover how different aerosol concentrations affect atmospheric color and visibility. This lesson is one of...(View More) four in the GLOBE program storybook entitled, "What's Up in the Atmosphere? Exploring Colors in the Sky." GLOBE (Global Learning and Observation to Benefit the Environment) is a worldwide, hands-on, K-12 school-based science education program.(View Less)

Through the use of prisms and glue sticks, this activity introduces students to a fundamental property of light: white light is made up of colors representing different wavelengths. Students use the results of the activity to explain the variation...(View More) in sky color from daytime (blue) to sunset (red). This lesson is one of four in the GLOBE program storybook entitled, "What's Up in the Atmosphere? Exploring Colors in the Sky." GLOBE (Global Learning and Observation to Benefit the Environment) is a worldwide, hands-on, K-12 school-based science education program.(View Less)

Working in groups, students use contact paper to make samplers to collect local data on aerosols - the small particles found in the atmosphere. Students then analyze, interpret and make predictions based on their data. Both the instructions for...(View More) making the aerosol sampler and the data sheets are included. This lesson is one of four in the Elementary GLOBE storybook entitled, "What's Up in the Atmosphere? Exploring Colors in the Sky." GLOBE (Global Learning and Observation to Benefit the Environment) is a worldwide, hands-on, K-12 school-based science education program.(View Less)